Category Archives: Emotions I have felt

Judgment day

When I was in the fourth grade, my younger brother, sister, and I responded to an altar call at the Bible Baptist church in Rantoul, Illinois. Now, it wasn’t like we weren’t Christians before. Mom had been raised a Methodist … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The Lighthouse

Men in boats about to capsize, look to my light with longing. Envy my firm footing. Do not know whether they should hold on to their wrecked ships or swim to shore. They assume I’ve always been here, safe and … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, Life metaphors, My personal history, Poems | Tagged | Leave a comment

The fortress

The day I walked through the doors of Gifford Grade School at the beginning of third grade, I entered my sixth school. By then, my father’s career in the military had taken my family from: McChord Air Force Base in … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, Life metaphors, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A prayer to Phoebe

Dear Phoebe, I have never witnessed greater pain than I did at your funeral on Friday. I felt it in my body. There were times when I could hardly breathe. And Phoebe, I barely knew you. How much worse must … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, Parenting | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The fear of fear

When I felt fear in the old days, I just felt fear. But since I learned about the law of attraction, which has become mainstream since the movie The Secret came out, things have gotten much more complicated. In a … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Oh, hell

My 80-year-old mother and I got in a big argument about hell on Sunday. She’s absolutely certain that I’m going there, and I’m just as certain that I’m not. Here’s my reasoning: One of the most important laws of physics … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

I’ve fallen, and it takes a village to get me up

While Adrian and I were at an orchard party yesterday, I missed a step and took a header onto concrete. I lay there taking inventory, trying to figure out what body part hurt worst, and people rushed to my aid. … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, Life metaphors, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

The psychic therapist

I once had a therapist who earned her living as a psychic before she switched careers and became a counselor. Her psychic skills were kind of handy when my ex-husband and I were going through marriage counseling, because identifying and … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Snakes, rocks, and hard places

When I look back on my life, I have often known when it was time to move on because I felt squeezed out of a particular situation. This is how I imagine a snake feels when it needs to shed. … Continue reading

Posted in Emotions I have felt, Life metaphors, My personal history, Spiritual journey | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments